Britain’s radical booksellers have been discussing Simon & Schuster publishing the work of Milo Yiannopoulos in the USA and the worldwide impact of the firm publishing someone known for views that have led 160 children’s writers in the USA, many published by the same firm, to say that his is “a voice of hate that stirs its followers to emotional, verbal and physical violence directed at anyone who disagrees or speaks to the contrary.” We are pleased that Simon & Schuster UK is not publishing the book.
We value Simon & Schuster’s publishing writers whose work has argued for a less violent society, in particular those children’s books which help their readers understand the situation of, for example, LGBT teenagers. Indeed, looking through our collective shelves, we find books in Simon & Schuster’s past and future programme taking a positive attitude towards women and towards minority groups, in this country and in the USA. Publishing Yiannopoulos risks damaging this work, tarnishes their reputation and raises the possibility of existing and future authors seeking alternative publishers.
Simon & Schuster is the publisher of the New York Times bestseller, Nobody: Casualties of America’s War on the Vulnerable, from Ferguson to Flint. We fear that the views of Yiannopoulos will lead to more such casualties.
Ross Bradshaw
On behalf of the ARB
